Popular Culture Review Volume 30, Number 1, Winter 2019 | Page 252

Book Review : Sounds of Origin in Heavy Metal Music
A cluster of chapters focus on the influence of Norwegian black metal in other cultures , highlighting the local and regional influence on constructions of narrative and aesthetics . Baptiste Pilo ’ s “ True Norwegian Black Metal : Nationalism and Authenticity in the Norwegian Black Metal of the ‘ 90s ” explores the search for authentic Norwegian identity in the first wave of Norwegian black metal bands , emphasizing a desire to understand Norwegian culture as separate from that of contemporary European countries . This chapter admirably delineates the shortcomings of the initial categorizations or observations ( and pearl-clutching ) over the interest in distinct national identities in certain metal subgenres . Pilo cites Jean-Luc Chabot ’ s observation that “ nationalism suffers from an imprecision of meaning and an ambiguity of use ” ( quoted in Pilo , 42 ), suggesting that “ the nationalism of black metal is not patriotism [ ... nor ] constitutive nationalism [ ... but ] closer to a political nationalism , placing the interest of the nation above other interests ; even if no band is committed to apolitical party [ ... [ T ] he nationalism of the Norwegian Black Metal actually is anachronistic since it is deeply anchored in the national romantic idea of the nation ” ( Pilo 42 ). There are three types of authenticity presented : expression , experience , and execution , which Pilo links to the authenticity of the “ metal underground ,” the pre-Christian heritage of the Vikings , and the political nationalism stances and aesthetic choices glorifying national heritage ( 44 ). National authentication is approached by musicians in myriad ways that cannot be shaped into a single lump of clay . This essay gives scholars a fresh approach to the complexities of “ national identities ” in heavy metal , which to date have been largely painted in black and white .
“ Songs of Darkness : Identities in Italian Black Metal ” �by Tommaso Frangioni , Filippo Masina , Giulio Pieroni , and
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